Access Management

The efficiency and safety of a highway depends largely on the amount and character of interruptions to the movement of traffic. The primary cause of these interruptions is vehicular movements to and from business, residences and other developments along the highway. Regulation and overall control of highway access are necessary to provide efficient and safe highway operation and to utilize the full potential of the highway investment. Accordingly, the Iowa DOT has established an access management policy to control access to the Primary Highway System.

Access rights
When right-of-way was obtained for the establishment of the primary highway system, the Iowa Department of Transportation obtained access rights that allow the DOT to restrict direct access to the primary highway. As a result, the DOT has established a functional hierarchy to prioritize the primary highway system. The District’s Engineering Operations Technician (EOT) will provide the applicant details regarding the particular entrance spacing allowable.

The resulting priority classification is as follows:

Priority Access Levels	Facility Description	Access Spacing Guidelines
Priority 1	Four-lane freeways with access allowed only at interchanges	No direct accesses allowed
Priority 2	Four-lane rural highways with access at interchanges and selected at-grade locations	1/2 mile minimum, 1 mile preferred
Priority 3	Four-lane rural highways with access at interchanges and selected at-grade locations	1,000 foot minimum, 1/4 mile preferred
Priority 4A/4B	Two-lane rural highways with fewer limitations on access	600/300 foot minimum between accesses
Priority 5	Two-lane rural highways with fewer limitations on access	One access allowed for every 1,000 feet of property frontage
Priority 6	Two-lane rural highways with no limitations on access (only used for low volume highways)	Accesses granted on a case by case basis depending on safety and need

Policy
For additional information concerning access, please refer to the
Iowa Primary Road Access Management Policy for guidance.